By PHYLLIS ZORN

Staff writer

Windex and squeegee in hand so he can do odd jobs along the way, a former Florida man pedaled his bike through Marion with a pull-behind cart carrying all his possessions Tuesday.

Born Daniel Lockridge, but now known as Daniel Freedom, he pedaled from Hillsboro to Marion on his way to Indiana, stopping at Marion’s coin laundry to wash his tent because it seemed musty after recent rains.

On Monday, he had ridden 30 miles to get to Hillsboro on his latest trip criss-crossing the country.

The 57-year-old left Florida 11 years ago and claims to have logged more than 100,000 miles on his cross-country journeys.

He stops along the way and works to earn money for food, often washing store windows as he passes through towns. He carries a squeegee and Windex with him. In Hillsboro Monday, he made $10 washing windows.

“I was taught you work for what you get, no one hands it to you,” he said. “I can go to sleep knowing I earned what I have.”

He travels a while, then stays put for a while. His current journey down the highways began three months ago in Florence, Colorado, where he had stopped for several months. It continued through a month-long visit with friends in Woodward, Oklahoma. His meandering route during this particular trip has been 1,710 miles long, he said.

Born in Texas and accustomed to heat, the humidity in Kansas this summer has made for an arduous ride, Freedom said.

Freedom said when he lived in Florida, he worked two jobs and earned minimum wage at each.

“I thought, what am I doing this for? It’s killing me,” he said. “It’s like a bug bit me — a ‘be on the road’ bug.”

When he reaches Indiana, he plans to take a year off from riding, find a job, and put back money to buy a recumbent bike. Recumbent bikes are easier to pedal and travel faster but are pricey.

“Probably take me about $50 a paycheck to buy it,” Freedom said.

Once Freedom has the bike, he plans to resume his nomadic adventures.